Why is Good Friday good? Why did Jesus have to die on a cross? What did Jesus’ death on a cross accomplish?

Jesus died the death that we experience daily in this broken world. Jesus died the death that we deserve in our sin and brokenness.

Good Friday is good because Jesus accomplished his purpose of suffering and death in our place and on our behalf. Jesus died so that he would intercept our consequences, so that we could be forgiven and restored. Jesus died so that this broken and sin-filled world would not feel the brunt of the judgement it deserves.

The Prophet Isaiah wrote of Jesus, sacrifice on the cross when he prophesied, “Yet it was our pain that he bore, our sufferings he endured. We thought of him as stricken, struck down by God and afflicted, But he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity. He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed. We had all gone astray like sheep, all following our own way; But the LORD laid upon him the guilt of us all.” (Isaiah 53:4-6, NASB).

Have you ever been so downtrodden that you felt like you were dying? Have you ever experienced sorrow so crushing that you felt death? Have you felt like death?

In the Garden of Gethsemane, in the face of his betrayal and the road to the cross, Jesus said to his disciples, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” (Matthew 26:38, ESV).

Facing the agony of death on a cross, Jesus experienced all the feelings of death, and then he experienced the agony of death. Jesus knows what our sin and death feels like, because he experienced it and shouldered it on the cross.

How well are you suffering? Are you suffering for all the right reasons?

We can suffer for the wrong reasons and we can suffer for all the right reasons. We can suffer because of our circumstances. Others can cause us suffering. We can bring suffering upon ourselves.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to suffer well and to suffer for the cause of Christ.

The Apostle Peter wrote this about suffering well: “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.” (1 Peter 4:16, ESV).

What does love look like when it is perfectly expressed? How are we to love one another well? How has Jesus loved us?

Love is a choice. Love looks outside of itself to the needs of others. Love is sacrificial. Love gives and pours itself out.

In John’s Gospel account, Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:34, ESV).

The love of Jesus is perfect. The love Jesus expresses is a sacrificial love. Jesus gave his life so that we can live and love as he loves us.

What does true sacrificial humility look like? When humility is expressed, what does it look like for those who experience it?

Humility is expressed in self-sacrifice for the benefit of others. True humility causes someone to lay down their lives for the benefit and well-being of others.

The Apostle Paul wrote of Jesus’ humility saying he “emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:7-8, ESV).

How bad is your brokenness and error? Do you feel like you are beyond the grace and forgiveness of God? What is the extent of your need to be forgiven?

No one is outside of the scope of God’s grace, mercy, and forgiveness. No matter what you have done, no matter who you are, no matter what you said, and no matter what you have done, God is ready to give you his forgiveness.

The Apostle Paul wrote the church in Rome with this encouragement, saying, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, ESV).

Who or what is Lord over your life? Is it evident by the way you speak, act, and live that you have a Divine Ruler of your life, other than yourself? Is God your one true King, or is there another lord over you? 

It has been said that you can tell who or what rules over someone by looking at their calendar and their bank statements. Where we spend our time and resources often reveals our allegiances. 

In an idolatrous world and culture, we can wrestle with many “gods” or idols which fight for sovereignty over our lives. However, there is only one Lord and King over our lives. 

How well are you sleeping at night? Do you feel safe and secure and at peace when you rest?

In this fallen and broken world, we have plenty of worry and concern to keep us up at night tossing and turning. However, God desires us to trust him as he gives us peace and rest and allows us to live in safety.

The wise, content, and peace-filled Psalmist writes, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” (Psalm 4:8, ESV).

Have you ever experienced being out of your mind? What is the experience of feeling like you are not of sound mind?

In times of torment, pressure, hardship, trail and difficulties, we can be cloudy headed and feel like we are not of sound mind. Our circumstances can bewilder and clutter our minds. The enemy would love to consume our minds with muddled futility, unrest, and a spirit of confusion and discord. We can experience living in a haze and can feel disoriented and at a loss.

In Mark chapter five, Jesus cast out demons from a man in the country of the Gerasenes. After Jesus delivered the man from his afflictions, Mark’s Gospel tells us, “And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had had the legion, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid.” (Mark 5:15, ESV).

If you needed someone to rescue you, where would you find your salvation? Who will save you in your time of need?

Most of us who have lived long enough have been rescued at some point in our lives. Most of us will need rescue at some point in our future. The need for salvation is real, in this life and for eternity. We need salvation.

In the Book of Acts, the Apostle Peter proclaimed salvation for the people, saying, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12, ESV).

What is the purpose of our fruitfulness? What does God do with the unfruitful and with the fruitful?

The kingdom of God is for those who produce kingdom fruit for God. Those who do not generate fruitfulness for God do not get the opportunity and the blessing to enjoy God’s fruitful kingdom.

When we produce kingdom fruit, we enjoy a fruitful relationship with God and inherit his fruit-filled kingdom.

In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus spoke this truth to the unfaithful people, saying, “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.” (Matthew 21:43, ESV).

Can you produce fruit without a connection to Jesus? What does the fruit you produce communicate about who you are and what is important to you? What do you do with the fruit you produce and what does that communicate?

In the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel of John, Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5, ESV).

We are called to produce fruit in our lives. However, without abiding in Jesus—without staying connected with him—we cannot produce fruit in our lives.

Where have you been? Where are you now? Where are you headed? How sure is your footing as you journey through this life?

All of us have a story of where we have been. We are all somewhere in life. We are all headed somewhere. We are not where we once were, and we are on our way. God is at work in our lives. God has been with us, is with us, and will be with us, caring for us and guiding us along the way.

King David shared his story of encountering God in the journey of life in Psalm 40, when he wrote, “I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.” (Psalm 40:1-2, ESV).

How fruitful is your life? How are you filling the earth and cultivating it? In what ways is your exercise of control over the things of this world bringing about fruit?

God spoke to the first human beings at creation “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”’ (Genesis 1:28, ESV).

God blessed humanity in the very beginning and gave us the work of being fruitful. We are called to exercise dominion over the earth, to fill the earth, and to make it submissive to our cultivation, care, and good use.

Do you plan out your work? Are your plans God’s plans? Does your work reflect the work of God?

Our work matters to God. Our work honors God, and we can honor God by committing our work to him. When we commit our work to God, he establishes our plans along the way to accomplish this work according to his purposes.

The wisdom of the Proverbs tells us, “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.” (Proverbs 16:3, ESV).

Are your paths straight, or are they meandering and filled with obstacles and misdirection? What would it look like if your paths were clear and directed by God?

When we trust in our own understanding, biased insight, and limited knowledge, we can be led astray. However, when we trust in God, our path will be directed by God.

The wisdom of the Proverbs tells us, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV).

How faithful is God to provide all you need? What if your normal means of provision dries up or changes? Is God still faithful to provide in times of scarcity—when circumstances change and become difficult?

The provision of God is as certain as God. It is in God’s faithful character and nature to provide in every circumstance, even when natural means fail us and prove to be uncertain and unfaithful.

The Prophet Habakkuk wrote, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.” (Habakkuk 3:17-18, ESV).

How do our words impact our lives? How do words influence us and those around us?

Our words matter. Grace filled words can add sweetness and healing to our soul and body.

The wisdom of the Proverbs promises, “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.” (Proverbs 16:24, ESV).

Is today’s anxiety enough for you, or would you like some more anxieties?

Most of us do not go around looking for more problems to be anxious about in our lives. The anxieties we experience on any given day are enough. We usually do not go around looking for more trouble.

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34, ESV).

Do you think like God thinks? Are your ways like God’s ways? Do you know what God knows? Do you do the things God does? Do you make decisions like God makes decision? Is God like you?

Our thinking is not like God’s thinking. What we do is not what God does. God’s thinking and God’s actions are insurmountably better than we can imagine.

God spoke through the Prophet Isaiah, saying, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9, ESV).